Sewn
by GlazingSilverWing
Summary: He had physical injuries that needed to be sewn, and one that needed to be sewn emotionally. But no one was ever willing to do such a thing. Now this one girl will have a chance to do that. Gaahina. Will soon be put on hiatus.
1. Chapter 1: Echo in the Hall

A/N: Damn….I don't know where I get my inspiration these days….it seems to be from DevianART or when I'm watching Naruto…or when I'm drawing…I'm so weird, it's freaking me out. THIS FANFIC IS IN THE TIME-SKIP, AFTER THE DEMON WAS TAKEN OUT OF THE KAZKEAGE, SABAKU NO GAARA. SO THE ROOKIE NINE, AND THE KAZEKAGE, ARE 15-16, CAN'T REMEMBER.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Naruto.

Summary: He had physical injuries that needed to be sewn, and one that needed to be sewn emotionally. But no one was every willing to do that. Now this one girl will have a chance to do that. Gaahina

"_**One never says what can never be done. Only a task they think is impossible to complete is a true challenge. But a challenge that is always hard, even when you tell yourself you can do it, is to sew someone's heart back together. The thing is fragile and takes much time. But in the end, its always worth the labor." **_

**_ GlazingSilverWing (me!)_**

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Sewn: Chapter One

"Alright…For know, Gaara-sama is in no such state to run a whole nation, so please, Temari-chan or Kankuro-san, you have to run the Kazekage office for sometime until he is feeling better. I'll have to call someone from Kohona to come and check on him. She has been under my supervision, so you can trust her. Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi will be staying here until he is properly healed."

Gaara lay on a white bed, looking blankly into the ceiling. He hated hospitals. They were always so white and clean, leaving a perfume of those cleaning smells that was unpleasant to him. He had only come here willing because Tsunade, the Hokage, who had come to check if he was doing okay without his demon, insisted that he should. He had a choice, but he listened to the Hokage, since she was one of the most skilled medics, and went to Suna's hospital.

Just outside his room, he could here the Godaime's voice and hear his sister's, and although Kankuro was there too, he didn't seem to speak. Their voices were muffled and Temari seemed to be concerned. Of course she would. After Gaara had changed, he had gotten to know his siblings and his siblings got to know him. Although Kankuro didn't worry as much as Temari, since he knew that his little brother could take care of himself, but sometimes he had to give advice and talk to him. Temari though, thought differently.

"I will pick the person. The person will take good care of the Kazekage. I trust her, and she is quite the loyal gal. I assure you that she will treat your brother very dearly and with kindness, she will be gentle while changing his bandages and will be stitching his injuries that require such a thing. I myself am not so good at stitching as she is. She will arrive three days from now," the Hokage's voice echoed from outside the room.

Since his return from the dead and from the Akatsuki cave, and since he had gotten to the hospital, they had found three bruises, slashes on his back, a wound blazed across his shoulder, one slash on his waist/stomach and some wounds that were deep and needed to be sewn and stitched. It seems that Deidara had a nice time torturing his body when he was dead and when they extracted the demon, Shukaku, out of him.

Even now, his face was half covered in bandages and around his pale neck.

Footsteps echoed outside of his room, indicating that his siblings and the Hokage were walking away. When their footsteps vanished, he let out a sigh and turned to his side, his back to the door.

He stared blankly at the empty room in which he was locked in. He let out a clam sigh and slipped his hand under the pillow, which his head lay down upon and placed the other hand by his head. He closed his eyes, fearing but knowing he should not feel afraid now. But then again, first times can always be the worst time.

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A/N: That…was short. I first planned to make this a one-shot, but, apparently, my stories like to make themselves and have me twist and turn them, switch them around and whatever...sometimes. So, this is a chapter fanfic now, and this will probably have 1 to six? –chapter. I hope you enjoyed this, thank you for reading, and review 


	2. Chapter 2: Memories of the Sewn

A/N: sigh I feel so empty and lost in the world of nothing. Just to say THIS CHAPTER IS IN KOHONA!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Naruto.

"_**The thing that hurts the most is not always what it seems. Sometimes, it can be more painful than you think. That pain can make a grown man crawl into a corner and whimper like a dog with its tail in between its legs." **_

_**GlazingSilverWing (me!)**_

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Sewn: Chapter Two 

Hinata sat next to her window, silently pulling the needle through the clothe, thread following the needle as it wove through the silk-like texture. Hinata stopped her work and sighed, looking out of the window and into the garden.

It was raining outside, as it had for five days.

She continued to sew, mindlessly looking out and listening to the sound of falling rain. She finally snapped back when she pricked her finger with the needle. She looked at it, slightly grimacing in pain. She brought it to her lips and gently sucked on her finger, easing the pain. A memory crept around the corner of her mind and flashed in her eyes.

_Flashback _

"_Mommy," came a soft voice. _

"_Yes, my little angel?" asked a woman who sat next to a window, a needle and clothe in her hand. _

"_W-what are you doing?" asked the little girl as she tiptoed to her mother and watched, fascinated as her mother's fingers seem to wove into the clothe._

"_Would you like to know?" _

"_Y-yes." _

"_I'm making a gift," she whispered to her child as she cupped the little girl's cheek. _

"_For Papa?" asked the girl, and yes, she called her father Papa before…_

"_No."_

"_For the baby?" the girl said as she pointed to her mother's-getting-round belly. _

"_No," the mother answered. _

"_Then, for who?" _

"_You," the mother whispered as she watched her child's eyes widen with joy and shock. _

"_R-really?" _

"_Really," the woman said as she nodded her head. _

_The room went silent until the little girl whispered, "W-would you teach m-me how to s-sew?" _

"_Of course, Hinata. It's a tradition in the_ _Getsurei family, my clan, to teach their children, mostly the girls, to sew. It's a legacy, my dear," her mother said as she pulled out a clothe, needle, and thread and handed it to her curious daughter. _

"_Ow!" the girl said as she pulled her hand back and looked at her middle finger. She sniffed and her mother asked for her to show her hand. The girl held it out and her mother examined it. Then, took it in her mouth and sucked gently on her daughter's finger. The girl giggle. "That tickles!" _

_Her mother giggled and gave her daughter back her hand and began directing her the right way on how to sew. _

_End of Flashback_

Nine mouths later, she died giving birth to Hanabi, but before she drew her last breath, she whispered to Hinata to be good and to teach Hanabi to sew. Her mother whispered her love and died.

Hinata tried to keep her promise, but Hanabi didn't seem to like sewing and instead took interest in training and the ninja way. So, in a few years, Hanabi was turned to be heir. Hinata, she was just like her mother, but weak, just the "normal" girl of the clan.

She still had the gift, a handkerchief. It was square shaped and designed with flowers and butterflies, the colors of pink, blue and green. The outline was sewed with lace and the texture of the handkerchief was like silk running through her fingers. She always kept it near her, for good luck and to ease her fear when she had that feeling.

_**Knock. Knock. **_

"Um….I…Y-yes?" came Hinata's soft, stuttering voice. She looked up to the door, sat up from her sitting position, put down her clothe and needle, and went to unlock the knob.

"Hanabi-chan?"

"Hn…Father wants you in his office…now, Hinata-neechan," the younger girl said before turning and heading into the hall. Hinata's eyes followed her sister down the hall until she disappeared behind a corner.

Hinata stood in her doorway for sometime and then let out a frustrated sigh. "Your father doesn't like to wait, you know," came a low voice. Hinata turned towards the direction and smiled.

"Neji-niisan! I thought y-you weren't going t-to be back from your m-mission until tomorrow!" Hinata shouted as she hugged her cousin and then pulled back.

"Well, it looks like I came back a day early. How are Hanabi and your father?" Neji asked.

"They're doing f-fine. How a-are Lee-kun a-and Tenten-chan? H-how is your r-relationship w-with Tenten-chan g-going?" Hinata asked.

"Well…Lee is doing fine, getting closer to being a full Master Gai and Tenten and I are doing great," Neji asked as he smiled to his cousin.

Hinata nodded. "I-I think I s-should go."

"Hn."

"I'll see y-you later Nissan!" Hinata voice echoed down the hall.

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_**Knock. Knock. **_

"Come in…"

Hinata slid the door open, bowed her respect, and walked silently up to her father's desk. "Y-you wanted me?"

"Yes, Hinata. The Hokage has sent me a letter. I'd like you to read it and go. You can not refusal," the head of the Hyuga said as he handed his eldest daughter an envelope.

Hinata took it gently, opened it, pulled out the letter and read it silently to herself. The letter said:

_Dear Miss Hyuga Hinata, _

_This letter is to inform you that Hokage has a mission for you. Your mission: Come to Suna, Village-Hidden-in-Sand, and be the caretaker of the Fifth Kazekage until he is feeling well. He has had a tough time. His demon has been extracted from him and feels rather weak coming back from the dead. He has numbers of wounds and some have to be stitched. Since you are a well known sewer, and in the medical force, you will do the things that require your strengths. Come quickly to Suna. _

_Your dear friend,_

_Shizune_

Hinata paled (if it was possible, since her skin is so pale). "T-the Fifth Kazekage i-isn't it –,"

"Sabaku no Gaara, yes," her father finished for her as he sipped his tea.

"You have to go. No choice, Hinata. Go and pack," her father ordered, "You're dismissed."

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"Good luck Hinata," Kiba said as he walked up to his teammate to say good-by.

It had been two hours since she had read the letter, and news went around that she had a mission…involving the Kazekage. Her friends that weren't in Suna (Naruto and Sakura) came to say good luck with the mission and they hoped she would com back soon, or, whole.

"Watch yourself, kay? And if he does anything, tell me, and I'll kill him," Kiba said.

Hinata nodded wryly.

"Good luck," Shino said as he slipped his hands into his pockets.

"Come back soon," Tenten and Ino said.

"This is so troublesome…say hello for me, will you?" Shikamaru said.

After all the good-byes, Hinata bowed to her friends. "Thank you a-all for s-seeing me o-off. I a-appreciate it." She lifted her head and nodded her head towards everyone and turned to leave.

"We'll miss you," they all whispered. It would be quite weird without Hinata. Shino and Kiba would be mostly likely to argue more, Ino and Tenten, although they were friends, would be, too, arguing. Neji and Hanabi wouldn't have their tea Hinata brought out to them when they were training. And no one else was willing to play Go or Shogi with Shikamaru other than Asumi and Hinata. Hinata was more of a challenge since she knew him pretty well and could most likely guess his strategy, and since she wasn't going to be there, he'd have play with Asumi, but he had missions.

Things weren't going to be the same for awhile, but at least she'd be back in a few weeks, not months, or so that's what they guess the time period would be.

Hinata walked through the forest out of Kohona and thought silently, _'This is going to be a long mission.' _

_

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_

A/N: I'm really not ready to start a new fanfic, am I?


	3. Chapter 3: Sewing through pale flesh

A/N: ….I hope I got everyone in character…tell if I did…

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Naruto except my ideas for fanfic, those are mine.

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Sewn: Sewing through pale flesh

Hinata arrived three days later, was hurried and stopped numerous times by Sand ANBU (they're like Kohona ANBU, it's just that their clothes is fit for the desert and their tattoo is the howling wind blazed on the skin of the upper arm) and had to be shown around by Temari. She was sent to the Hokage, who was going to be leaving Suna right away, and was given instructions for the care of the Kazekage and was shooed to Suna's hospital.

"I…um…w-where is K-Kazekage-sama's r-room?" Hinata asked, stuttering to a nurse.

"Are you the caretaker Hokage-sama sent?" asked the nurse, giving Hinata an once-over scan and looking at her weirdly, almost as if saying, 'you got to be kidding…_**this **_is the caretaker!?'

Hinata saw her expression and gulped an amount of salvia. "Y-yes."

"Well…then Kazekage-sama's room is on the second floor, room 290," the nurse, leaving Hinata in the hall.

Hinata stood there for a long moment, and then moved her legs, walked up the stairs to the 2nd floor and searched for room 290. She found it quickly and slid the door open, scanning the room with her lavender-pooled eyes. She stopped as he eyes fell down upon the sleeping Kazekage.

He was just sleeping there, the white sheets kicked to the foot of the bed, one hand next to his head, almost brushing against his cheek and rich-red colored hair. The other hand was across his stomach, it rose as he breathed in. His head was turned to the window, his lips were parted to inhale air and when the breeze came from the single open window, the wind kissed against his pale lips and ran its slim fingers through his tangled hair. His eyes, closed, were completely black and they seemed to be shut tight.

Close to him was a chair full of gifts, flowers, cards and etc. Hinata walked slowly up to the stack and pulled out a card. She liked the front; it was designed with desert flowers and lace. She opened it slowly and smiled as she read what was written. She closed it and settled it back down to the pile of gifts and out of respect didn't touch the other gifts.

Hinata glanced at the sleeping Kazekage and could feel her cheeks burn. She swallowed a lump in her throat and stepped slowly forward, all the while wishing that she hadn't learned medic ninjustu. Soon, she was beside him, only the air separated them from each other and Hinata could only stare at his face, her cheeks flushed.

She turned her head, but quickly snapped her head back as he heard his breath become fast. He was sweating, clutching the pillow, jaws clamped, he breath low and quick. But the scene flickered through Hinata's lavender orbs in seconds and he was sleeping peacefully again.

Hinata's eyes widened when she saw her hand reach out for him. Her fingertips brush the skin of his forehead and soon her whole palm was against the skin. She noticed that it was soft, like velvet and pale, like her own skin. How could anyone in the desert by pale? She felt warmth under her palm, warm, but not warm enough to sense that he had a fever. Her palm lifted from his forehead and her fingers began tracing the red kanji on his forehead. She wondered how he got it, since, when they first meet, it was there and people said he was "untouchable" or that "he's come back without a single scar".

Soon, her fingers traced his still darkened eyes and felt it smooth as silk running under her fingertips. As Hinata began to force her hand from the incontrollable touches she was making. Her cheeks were tainted pink and red and her skin was warm. Why did she touch him? Was because she wanted to check if he was going through a fever and got curious at the end? Or was it because it's like one of the times which cannot be explained? Her thoughts battled in her head and in a few seconds, she felt her head spinning.

She drew her hand back slowly, but something forced her to stop. She swallowed a lump in her throat, making her throat hurt from the inside.

Gaara's eyes snapped open and he grabbed the person by the wrist and jerked them slightly forward and tightened his grip. He narrowed his eyes and his lips thinned when he spotted the person. A girl, with black hair and white orbs, wearing a purple sweater with white sleeves and dark purple pants, around her neck was a Kohona headband. He glared at her through his narrowed eyes and said with anger and disgust, "_**Don't**_ touch me. Why the hell are you here and who the hell are you."

Hinata tried to wiggle her hand out of the Kazekage grip, but failed and predicted that she would have red markings on her wrist later. "P-please Kazekage-sama, l-let go, y-your hurting m-my wrist," she pleaded, looking at the Kazekage with pleading eyes covered with black lasses.

"Answer my question," he demanded, tightening his grip, knowing all the time the pressure he was causing would leave her small bruises. He saw her wince slightly and close her eyes, whispering something, but he couldn't hear the words. "Speak louder."

"I'm here as your caretaker!" Hinata softly shouted.

Gaara looked at the girl doubtfully at first, but silently and quickly nodded his head and slapped her wrist out of his hand.

Hinata gripped her wrist, looking at it and silently whispering a medic justu.

"Fine. Begin and get it over with," he demanded, grabbing the back of his shirt and pulling it over his head and pulling at the bandages on his back.

"W-what are y-you d-doing?" Hinata asked, turning away, more heat rising into her cheeks.

"Hokage-sama said you're a good sewer and known through four of the great nations. She said I needed stitches on the slash on my shoulder blade, my waist, and one at my lower leg. Get it over with, would you, or would you rather stand there with flushed cheeks and blood all over you?" Gaara asked rudely and crossed his arms over his bare chest.

"R-right," Hinata said a bit worried and uncomfortable. Who wouldn't be? She began chewing on her lower lip instead of her usual poking her two index fingers together. She reached into her poach and pulled out a needle and medic thread (it's just thread, only stronger and for stitching). She shakily walked over to Gaara and, with flushed cheeks and heated skin, examined the wound, pulled the thread into the eye of the needle and leaned over his shoulder to beginning stitching the flesh back together.

---------

Hinata landed on her bottom and the door closed behind her with a slam, sand withdrawing from the slits of the door. Hinata stood up, sweeping away anything on her bottom and legs. "Hinata-chan! Are you done with Gaara already?" asked someone from the other side of the hall.

Hinata turned the person and smiled, waving a hand. When the person got there, she seemed to frown. "What happened? Your hair seems a little messy and you have grains of sand in it."

"W-well, Temari-chan, I-I….er….Kazekage-sama, h-he…," Hinata was cut off.

"Oh. I get the situation. Hold on one se –," Temari cut herself off as she slid the door open and stomped/walked into her brother's room. There was some mumbling and muffled reasoning before the door slid quickly open and Temari was there in the doorway, smiling happy at her small success.

"Fine…Hyuga, come here and finish your task," Gaara said as he crossed his arms over his chest and crossed his legs, ruffling up the sheet. His eye were piecing through me, Hinata thought.

She stepped back into the room and walked nervously towards the redhead on the bed, Temari closing the door behind her and whispering a good luck and that she'd come back and check on her and her younger brother.

Hinata swallowed a chunk of saliva and gently grabbed the needle and sat back behind Gaara. With shaking hands but careful eyes, she poked the needle into the pale flesh and pulled it through, black thread following the needle, sewing back the flesh.

She spotted him clamp his jaws together and mumble between clutch teeth. _'This must be hard for him,' _Hinata thought as she sewed into his flesh. _'He's never had to deal with pain before…it must be really painful, more than usually.' _"You'll be okay…I won't really hurt you," she whispered in a melodic voice.

"Right…that's what they always say before they turn around and stab you in the back," she heard him mumble. What was that suppose to mean?

"E-excuse me?"

"I don't like repeating myself…," he said.

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After sewing flesh back together, carefully putting ointment on the wounds, constantly bandaging wounds and dealing with fangirls that squealed when they saw the Kazekage shirtless, but who was not pleased to see a Hyuga sewing at his flesh. She didn't really have to deal with them, though. Gaara did most of that, sliding the door shut, slamming the door in the fangirls faces.

After all of that, the sun was setting and the night breeze crept through the window. Hinata went into the bathroom to wash her hands and when she came back, she saw that the redhead had laid down and fell asleep, without even bothering to pull the covers on. She smiled somewhat at the sight.

He's face seemed calm, not like when he was awake. When he was, he seemed to be mumbling to himself, cursing, glaring with his aqua-green eyes gleaming in the light and his brows always in a frown.

Hinata stayed with him until the sun finally set behind the endless hills of sand. She moved to the door, but stopped. Where was she going to go after she took care of him fro the day? But then again, caretakers stay with their patient, so that's what she decided.

She pulled up a chair and sat a few feet from Gaara's bed and stared blankly at him through thick, black lasses. Hinata sat for a few minutes, then stood up and pulled the covers over him.

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A/N: Why do I feel like I completely failed on the first day of taking care of Gaara? I've been thinking a lot and sometimes I wonder if the rating for the story is right. I'm still planning it out in my head, but….Again, tell if I got the characters in character…I wouldn't be to surprise if anyone stopped reading after this chapter…but either way, I'll still continue it and see what happens, even if no one is reading it. 


	4. Chapter 4: Dream forever not

A/N: I'm kinda down today…so not much to say…

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

"_**What lays hidden in a dream stays there in the person's mind, never to be retold by another nor listen to by any living being. In the mind, it is truly a scary and wonderful place."**_

_**GlazingSilverWing (me!) **_

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Sewn: Dream forever not

Gaara woke up jerking forward and in cold sweat, his breath slightly tethering and began an irregular pattern. He put one hand on his forehead, breathing hard and trying to calm it. He let his tense shoulders relax slightly, his breathing finally returning to normal. He let out an exhaled sigh of relief.

The sun wasn't out when he jerked awake and so he was encircled by the night's darkening grasp, the only thing pulling back him was the faint light of the full moon. He was tired, too tired to care or notice anything and flopped back down, shutting his eyes, but slowly opening them as something brushed against his hand. He looked upon the thing and was slightly surprise when he saw the Hyuga girl.

She was sitting in a chair, she had her head in her crossed arms; they lay on the mattress where Gaara was sleeping on, her arms close to his hip. One of her hands was out, fingertips brushing against his hand and she mumbled something. "I-It'll be okay…y-you'll make it…p-please don't die…don't!" Hinata shut her eyes tight, she started to sweat and clutch the bed sheets. Her hand jerked forward, capturing his hand and pulling him forward.

Gaara was so surprised by the sudden act that he shifted, his head fell down to her level and her warm breath brushed against his ear. "Don't die…please…don't…," he heard her mumble, her voice shaken and seemly in pain. He could feel water drip down his cheek and slid down. She was crying.

She's having a nightmare, he thought. He could easily jerk free, but something held him back. She continued mumbling into his ear about not dieing and never leaving her. "Please don't leave me…I…I love you," she whispered into his ear.

He jerked, slipping his hand quickly from her soft grasp. She didn't say it to him, she couldn't be in love with him, they barely knew each other, and she was caught in a dream, wasn't she? _'You wish someone loved you,'_ came a small voice from inside of Gaara's head. _'But you'd just push the person away like you do all the others. Even your siblings you push away.'_ He replied to himself: _**'What am I suppose to do? I don't want the same thing to happen with…**_,' his mind trialed off.

"…Naruto-kun…," he heard her mumble.

He let out an exhale of breath that seemed a lot like a sigh of relief and lay back down, running his fingers through his tangled rich-red wine colored hair, scratching his scalp.

The moonlight shone dimly into the room from the closed window (Hinata had closed early in the day) and he stared blankly out as the night turned to twilight. Twilight turned to dawn and he was still awake.

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A\N: "……………….This was just something I wanted to add………….._**just **_had to add. This might be the last chapter…not literally…I mean one of the last updates for awhile. I'm still planning everything out, so you might have to wait awhile for the next update, maybe in a few days or weeks.

Inner me: cough me, you're going to take forever…a year should be mostly said.

Me: Hey! I'm not going to take that long! I have more important, kinda, stuff to do!

Inner me: Such as? Editing Cursed by Life? Yeah right! You've barely even edited the third chapter! And there are seven!

Me: Shut up!

Inner me: Make m–

I punch inner me in the face as hard as I could

Inner me: Ow! Son of a–

throws a punch at me

Me: Hey!

gets into a big fight with my inner self

Me: brushes off dirt. ANYWAY….I hope you enjoyed this, thank you for reading and revie – Hey!

Inner me: grabs my collar and shoves me down.

WAK! BAM!

Out of nowhere: Son of a –

After a few minutes of reckless fighting….

Inner me: Triumph! fingers in a "v" Revi –

Me: That's my line! pulls down and starts to beat the living crap out of inner me Bye! Review!


	5. Chapter 5: The Crying Sky

A/N: "………"

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Chapter Five: The Crying Sky

The sun ray's slapped across Gaara's face and he stirred, his eyes shutting tightly, his face slightly scrunching. Slowly his eyes opened and he moved a hand above his eyes to block the gleaming sun.

"M-morning," he heard a soft voice from his side. He turned and gave the girl with the white eyes an once-over, looking bored and annoyed at the end.

"……"

Silence flowed its way between the two, neither making a single move. Then, Gaara frowned at nothing, pushed the white covers off and headed towards the bathroom with wobbly legs, scratching his scalp and tangling his hair more.

Hinata looked up after the bathroom door was slammed shut. She let out a frustrated sigh and set down the clothe and needle in her hand. Today was going to be a long, hot day again. She never realized that in Suna, the hours seemed so long, although she knew that it always equaled 24 hours, never over.

The bathroom door opened silently and Gaara came out, his eyes swollen red, his hair damp, sticking to his forehead and the black rings around his eyes were getting darker. He seated himself on the white mattress and laid down, putting one hand on his forehead, turning towards the girl with the lavender-white eyes, staring at her through half lidded eyes and mumbled, "What time is it?"

Hinata stammered the answer. "I-it's…um…its 10:30 am."

Gaara slightly groaned and got up, sitting on the edge of the mattress, his back towards Hinata. Slowly but swiftly, he took off his shirt and closed his eyes, letting out an exhale of breath. "Well?" he asked impatiently.

Hinata took a minute to regain back from her little trance and walked up to the supply closet, pulling out a small container of ointment and a roll of clothe bandage. She wryly moved toward him and stood in front of him, asking politely to move his elbow so she could unwrap the bandage around his waist. Her fingers brushed his skin, heat rising to her cheeks, but she ignored that fact of contact and slowly pulled at the bandage. It fell lose in her hand and she pulled it away, setting it to her side and grabbing the container of ointment.

She asked again politely to move his elbow away. She dipped two fingers into the small container and pulled away, her fingers covered in a white substance. She gently slid her colored fingers over the wounds on his waist, carefully avoiding the area of sewn skin.

She felt the skin rise and harden as her finger skimmed over the wounds with the ointment. As her fingers moved towards the end of each cut or slash, she felt his smooth, rubbery-like skin and its warmth. She blushed and asked him to turn around so she could face him and get the injuries from his waist and up, slightly flushed and embarrassed for asking.

He shifted and moved his elbow when she asked politely. Why can't she talk like everyone else, the redhead thought. She's always stuttering. It's getting annoying…and irritating that I can't yell at her to shut up. "Don't stutter," he said, almost unknowing saying it out aloud.

"W-what?" Hinata asked, looking up from her work.

There she goes again, he thought. "Don't stutter, it's annoying," he replied, nothing in his voice.

Her head dropped down and she went back to her work, nodding her head and whispering so lowly that he could not hear her. Why would he want to know what she was whispering to herself anyways? Why did he even bother to care.

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As Hinata was finishing wrapping a bandage around Gaara's upper arm, the door slid open and in the door way, was a boy with sun-kissed hair, blue eyes that belonged to the sea's surface and sky. He had tan skin, his body covered in orange and black. On his right thigh was a shuirken/kunai holster. He had a leaf headband plastered on his forehead, the ends long and trailing down his back. He had slashes on his cheeks that maybe the resemblance of whiskers. On his face was a grin and he said with much happiness and delight, "Yo! How are you doing? Good to see you!"

"Baka! Knock, will you!?" screamed a girl from behind him. She had pink hair the color of cherry blossoms, light green eyes that belonged to the plant ivy and the green water. She had pale skin, her upper body covered in a red top with a zipper that ended at the bottom of her neck. From the hip to above the knee, she wore black shorts, covered with a white short skirt that had straps on either side. She wore boots with a flat sole that came up to below her knees. She had an angry face on and was screaming at the blonde.

The room was silent after the girl was done shouting at the young man in front of her.

"…Uzumaki…Haruno….," Gaara said slowly and low.

The young man stepped into the room, the female behind him following. "Sheesh, I have a first name. Don't need to be so formative, Gaara," the blond boy said.

"Uzumaki, Naruto…why are you still here? I thought you left after the funeral," the redheaded youth said with a frown. Hinata tucked the loss end of the bandage into an inner binding and stood up, walking to the newcomers.

She bowed her respect for the two and said with a shy but happy smile, "H-hello N-Naruto-kun, Sakura-chan. I-it's nice to see y-you both. Why a-are you here?"

"Oh…just some last unfinished business in Suna. Hokage-sama suggested we pay a visit to Kazekage-sama before we left. After this little meeting, we plan to go back to Kohona," Sakura said as she bowed politely back to Hinata.

"Yeah, that's it," Naruto said as he shifted to move towards Gaara leaving Hinata and Sakura to themselves.

"So, how have you been? You must be blushing like crazy these days," Sakura said as she winked at Hinata and looked over towards Gaara.

"W-w-what?" Hinata asked, blushing, covering her cheeks with her fingers.

"Well, you're his caretaker, and you always blush when you have skin contact or something, and I _know _you have done that," Sakura said, winking at the shy Hyuga again.

Hinata blushed deeper and shrugged her shoulders. "I-I've been feeling good b-but sometimes I-I feel like I want t-to cry," she admitted.

"You do!? Arg! That Gaara! What did he do? Tell me and I'll beat him up!" Sakura declared, shaking her fist at the redhead, who, from the corner of his eye, glared at her.

Hinata went up to Sakura and waved her hands in front of her friend. "N-no! J-just some old m-memories," she said hastily.

Sakura looked at the girl once over. She seems so tired, she thought, noticing the black lines under her eyes.

"Hey, Gaara! Why did you pick Hinata to be your caretaker? I bet you have a crush on her, eh?" Naruto said, gently jabbing his elbow into Gaara's side.

"What…? What the hell is your problem? I don't like girls, they can be so emotional, and I rather not deal with that. And why do you a –"

"Well, you could have chosen Sakura-chan. She's a really good medic-nin, gentle and really pretty! Why didn't you pick Sakura? I mean, Hinata is a good medic-nin, but she's always busy with her training and so on. So, why did you pick the shyest, most meek girl in all Kohona?" Naruto asked.

Gaara only stared at his 'friend' in complete annoyance. "Baka….For one, I didn't pick, Hokage-sama did. Two, Sakura isn't such a good sewer, so she wouldn't be good at stitching. Three, at least Hinata's knows when to shut up. Four, I don't like Hinata or Sakura. And five, shut up," he said in monotone.

Hinata heard every word and sloped her head down, not hearing Sakura's beginning lecture. A small, tiny tear flowed down her cheek and dripped down her chin and onto the floor.

No one noticed, except Gaara, much to his own surprise. As Naruto began to say that he couldn't believe that Gaara was Kazekage and going on and on, he noticed that the Hyuga girl had slopped her head down and stared blankly at the floor. A tear rolled down her cheek and dropped to the floor. It silently splashed, but the noise rang and echoed in his ears. He felt some sort of a new feeling for her, much like sympathy and pity. But he snapped and wondered why he had even cared.

Thunder crackled through the air.

---------

Hinata gently closed the bathroom door and walked over to Gaara, asking with a stutter if he needed anything. Gaara noticed that her eyes were swollen red, black lines lay under her eyes and her cheeks where red, flushed with emotion and tear stained.

He shook his head and looked outside. It had been pouring ever since Naruto and Sakura came to visit. It wasn't normal to have rain in the dry season. This isn't normal, he thought as he stared outside of the window.

Hinata sniffed and rubbed one of her fingers under her nose. She had been doing that ever since Naruto and Sakura had left, it was beginning to annoy Gaara. She sniffed again and he couldn't take it anymore.

He leaned over the table to his right side and tugged at pieces of tissue sticking out of the box, pulled it free and handed it roughly to Hinata, practically shoving it into her hands.

"Oh…I-I…er…t-thank you," she uttered, turning, sneezing and blowing gently into the tissue. She curled it up into a ball and threw it into the trash.

The door slid open and the two turned to see who it was. In the door way, was a young girl, about five or six. Her clothes, a blue dress ending at her knees, soaked in water. At her side, were a chalk board and a box of chalk. Her eyes were the color of crimson blood red, her hair silvery-blue and her skin was a milky white. In her small hands, she held a vase of red, made for a single flower and it had it so. The flower was of a rich red blood and a mixture of black, the petals delicate. The stem was green and had many thorns, but no leaves.

"W-who a –"

"Oh…it's you," Gaara said in a low voice.

"Who a-are you?" Hinata asked as she watched the girl walk into the room, the hem of her dress dripping water on the floor. She walked to the table next to Gaara, placed the flower gently on the table by standing on her toes so she wouldn't drop it, turned to Gaara and held out her hands up to him. He picked her up and seated her next to him.

"Who's s-she?" Hinata asked, looking at the girl with curiosity.

The two people were both silent. The girl took out the small chalk board, a piece of white chalk and wrote, _'Hi! My name Irihi!' _

"Irihi? That's a p-pretty name," Hinata said. That name means the sun, like most of the names of the Hyuga, she thought. She turned to Gaara. "Why d-doesn't she j-just speak?"

He was silent for a while. His fingers brushed through her silvery-blue, soaked hair and slowly muttered, "She's mute. She's not deaf, she just can't speak. Her medic records say her voice box is too small to produce a voice for her to use."

"Who's h-her parents?"

"…She doesn't have one. She's in Suna's Orphanage," Gaara replied.

Irihi wrote carefully, _'Gaara-kun built it after he became Kazekage. It's a nice place; really. _She seemed to pause her writing for a moment, as if thinking of what to write next and explain in words her feelings. _'He gave us something that people without parent don't have. He gave us a home.'_

"I found her and her brother in the streets. A week after the building of the orphanage, her brother died from a blood disease even Hokage-sama doesn't know how to cure. He was only two years old," Gaara muttered softly, so softly, that Hinata couldn't almost hear him. His voice seemed to vanish slightly as it bounced off her eardrum.

"Oh…I-I'm terribly s-sorry…," Hinata said in a soft voice, almost shaking.

The girl wrote, _'It's alright, I can look back at it without crying anymore. I'm not alone anymore without my brother.' _She instantly stop writing and looked down at her feet. Then quickly wrote:_ 'I have everyone at the Orphanage and Gaara-kun. And maybe, if I get to know you, you.'_ She smiled at Hinata and Hinata smiled softly back at her. She continued writing._ 'But sometimes, thinking about him makes me want to cry. It hurts to lose the one you love.' _

"Y-yes it is. I-I know how you feel," Hinata said.

The rain pounded against the window harder and harder, lightening twisting through the sky and the thunder drummed through the sky. The rain fell with grace, silent twirls on their heels.

"You better be going. This is quite a storm and Yisia will be worrying about you. I'll see you in a couple of days," Gaara said, lifting the girl up and then setting her down on her feet to the floor.

She moved towards Hinata, putting her arms around her legs as an attempt of a hug and when she withdrew her small arms, she moved towards the door. She stopped, wrote good-by, smiled at the two people and waved her last good-by. In a matter of seconds, she was gone.

---------

Hinata moved towards the window to close it. That's funny; I know I closed it, Hinata thought. She gripped the handle bar and was about to push it to the right, when his voice stopped her.

"Don't…It doesn't rain often in the desert and when it does, the rhythm as it falls is…leave it open," Gaara said almost sleepily.

"B-but…," Hinata began to protest. She turned to face the redhead but found him asleep. She withdrew her hand from the handle bar of the window and moved towards the white bed. Gently, she pulled the covers over him and seated herself next to him.

She watched him sleep until the sun fell and the moon rose from the endless hills of sand. "Miss…we are to turn off the lights," came a nurse's voice from the door.

"O-okay," Hinata said softly. The lights were flashed off and everything went dark. The room only lit as lightening danced through the darkened sky. The rain still poured hard but fell softly to the ground.

The Hyuga heiress soon fell asleep in the same position as the night before.

---------

Gaara woke up with a jerk and found himself in cold sweat. His hair was sticking to his forehead, his cheeks flushed red, burning with emotion unknown, his body covered in a screen of sweat, shaking.

The wind blew into the room, brining in the smell of fresh water from the still falling rain. Sand was caught in the wind and gently plopped down onto his lap. He looked down, slightly smiling. He hadn't seen sand in awhile. He couldn't, this was a hospital and the Hokage had insisted he did not use charka; his charka way was irregular, which meant no sand. He ran his finger through the small rocks and used a little amount of charka to make it rise and swirl around him.

It seemed long since he had done that just for the fun of it. He flowed it out the window and withdrew his charka, the sand falling gracefully to the ground.

"Nnnn….," there were muffling cries next to him. He turned and saw Hinata sit on a chair, slouching forward to rest her head in her crossed hands that lay on the mattress. She had her face buried into her arms, muffling her cries of pain and agony. The piece of white sheet under her hands were pulled and jerked by her. Gaara could feel the sheet getting wet.

She cried inside her crossed arms, crying her pain, anguish, agony, any emotions left inside her away with her tears. Her shoulder began shaking and her grip on the sheets tightened.

She's going through another nightmare, Gaara thought. Either the same one, or one much more horrible to her than the last.

For a slight moment, Gaara could have sworn that he saw her open her eyes. But they weren't the one he had heard so much about, not the eyes that had kindness, care and love in them, glowing like the clear moon on a starless, cloudless night. They were dull and seemed to be lost of light. The moon at the moment seemed to dim and then flash back to its normal light as her lids closed over her eyes.

She continuing crying, but her shoulders stopped shaking and the little cries never erupted from her throat again. She let go of the sheets and her fingers unwrapped from the clutch ball it was in a minute ago.

Everything stood still and silent except the rhythm of the crickets chirping from outside and the darkness again closed around them.

Gaara sat there motionless for second, then, got up, his legs slightly wobbling. Once he steadied his balance, he moved towards a draw and opened it. He silently slipped a sheet from the draw and walked back the mattress, seating himself in his previous position. He looked toward Hinata. She seemed clam now, her nightmare was probably fading, but her tears had not ceased.

He kept his eyes on her face for a moment, staring at beauty unknown and forgotten. Slowly and carefully, he slipped the covers over her.

* * *

A/N: XP Hmmm…Are you satisfied with the length? Any of you? On my Microsoft Words, it's EIGHT pages. I"m sorry if the words are kinda big, the edit had big words although, don't know why, my Microsoft Words' type size is 12.

I'd just like to say to my sister, also my beta, which I'm very sorry that I put Naruto in here and made it seem that I was bashing at your ORC (One true couple). I never intended to do that. I simply wanted to him in there so I could prove a certain point (written below). So, forgive me, and if you don't, then I understand. I just needed to grasp the relationship between him and Hinata. They have a strong friendship, and always support in each other, but in here, I have different tale to tell about there relationship. So, I hope you will forgive your little sister and I am truly sorry for bashing your one true pairing, Naruto and Hinata.

Hey! Someone said that in Gaahina fanfic, Naruto doesn't show up most of the time, that in Gaahina fanfic, it doesn't seem that Naruto isn't there. That Gaara and Hinata fall in love because of an arrange marriage, or because Naruto broke her heart, or for something else. Well, this isn't the usual Gaahina fanfic! So, there, Naruto DID show up in here. Hinata still likes Naruto, but SOMETIMES, he makes her cry for he is in love with Hinata's best friend, Sakura (Arg! Can't spell her last name)

Thanks for reading; I hope you enjoyed it dearly. I'd like to thank my sister for beta-ing my countless numbers of chapters for my stories. Thank you , alice-insomnia. Applaud for her, please. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed, and review. .


	6. Chapter 6: Dreams of the Forgotten

A/N: Hmmm……Why do I feel like this is going to be a little…dark… and sad…? I'm probably just a little crazy to think that. OH, NARUTO IS IN TOTAL OOC (out of character)

Disclaimer: I so not own Naruto.

"_Dream Sequence" _

* * *

Chapter Six: Dreams of the Forgotten 

"_Mommy!" screamed a young girl with raven-black hair, streaked with blue. She had the eyes of the moon and she would have looked beautiful if she weren't crying. _

_The girl ran into the room the person she called her mother and ran quickly to the person's side. "Mommy, you can't die! You promised you'd stay with me forever!" the child screamed, crying and slamming her head down on the mattress where her mother laid. _

_The young woman turned and smiled at her daughter wryly. "I'm sorry, Hinata. I-I've disappointed you…I'm s-sorry my love, b-but I can't always be there for you…I-I'm sorry…B-but know that even after the dead, my love for you has not died, but will be created in a new form of love…Don't…forget…that…," whispered the child's mother and closed her eyes, drawing her last breath and slipped away from the grasp of life. _

_The young child watched in horror as her mother drew her last breath, her chest rising and then falling softly after. "M-mommy? Mommy!? MOMMY!?" _

_---------_

"_My daughter is weak…," whispered the head of the Hyuga as he watched his eldest daughter pound her fist into the wood of the pole. _

"_No…she is not…she grieves over her mother. You must know, my dear brother. You wept that night she died," replied a man that looked similar to the man he was talking to. _

"_Feh…I did…but that was only once and I have no more reason for such an emotion. My wife's death was two weeks ago, and yet, my eldest has not stopped grieving. She is weak to keep such emotion."_

"_My brother, I have to disagree with you. The strongest shinobi are those who accept the feelings anew and old," said the man with similarities. _

"_And I doubt they made in this word alive. The 4__th__ Hokage did the same, and now, the village's greatest Hokage is dead," said the head of the Hyuga roughly._

"_But he became the strongest accepting feelings." _

"_Feh…and that only got him dead in the end." _

"…"

"_Hinata! Do it again!" the Hyuga head demanded harshly to his eldest daughter _

"_H-hai!" she said, taking the pose for Gently Fist and running to a near by pole. She stroked it hard and quick, but no charka released._

_---------_

"_N-Naruto…," stuttered a female with long black hair, streamed with hints of blue. _

"_Yeah?" the boy asked, not turning around from his conversation with a pink-haired girl. _

"_I…I-I…I l-lo-lo…I love you!" the girl softly shouted. _

_The boy was silent for a moment. "…So…?" he asked at last, his voice low and cold. _

"_W-w-w-what?" the girl managed to say, her voice shaking and her shoulders as well were shaking. Her heart felt like it was going to shatter in her rib cage. Again. _

"_So…? Why didn't you tell me early? I'm busy looking for Sasuke and I'm going out with Sakura already. What do you except me to do? Break up with the Beauty and take the Beast? No way in Hell I will," said the boy harshly. _

(Side note: I'm so sorry alice-insomnia! But I told this would happen and you wouldn't mind. But if you forgot, I'm so sorry. /Goes on knees/ For give me, my dear sister!)

"_B-b-but –," _

"_Hinata, just leave me and Sakura alone…I'd like it if you would respect my choice." _

_The girl's heart broke instantly like glass pushed off the table. The girl clamped her jaw together and ran for dear life, tears squeezing out from her tightly closed eyelids. She ran as fast and hard she could, not even stopping when she felt her legs going numb. The rain poured down harshly upon her, making her soaked. _

_Finally, she gasped for air as a sign of defeat. She dropped to her knees, opening her eyes and breathed hard. _

_Once she caught her breath, she wiped away her tears. She clutches her chest and breathed hard again. It hurt so much there. _

_The world around became dark and cold. The girl lifted her head and was in surprise when she saw black surround her. In the middle of, whatever place she was in, a hole began to form and looked as if it was sucking its surroundings closer…closer…_

_The girl screamed as she realized that the hole was sucking everything in. But as she stood up and began to turn, she clumsily lost her footing and fell. She opened her mouth but nothing came out. She held out her hand to grasp something, but only thin air slipped through her fingers. _

"_I'm falling," she whispered. "Into the darkness of loneliness." _

_Smooth, hard fingers grasped her wrist… _

Hinata jerked. She felt herself panting and her face wet. She realized the wetness were tears and wiped them quickly away. She put her hand down, but as soon as she done that, she felt a jerk. And then another. And then another. Hinata began looking for the source, not realizing it was the youth on the bed.

When she felt him pull her hand, she instantly jerked her hand free and then looked at the youth on the bed. "Don't…leave me," he mumbled, his voice still cold, but seemed soft and almost sad.

Almost.

Hinata couldn't believe her ears. "He's just in a dream, he's just in a dream," she whispered to herself. He began jerking again and his eyes seemed more shut. His brow began to cover with sweat and then his body began to drench with the substance. Hinata was getting worried now. "G-Gaara?"

---------

"_You were always alone…never shall the words of one's true feelings whisper into your ear. You are a demon of this village, a vessel, the pain –curse of the village buried in sand and covered with the blood of its once shinobi. You are the demon child, the one true bearing of the dead and the emotion hate. You were never loved!" shouted a man with hair the color of sandy yellow. _

"_NO! Y-your wrong…I-I will be loved! I-I will –" started a boy with rich-red colored wine hair. He began to object to the person's saying, but was interrupted by him. _

"_But in your heart, you know my words are true. You will never be loved as the person you are, a demon of night and blood. You are to stay alone in this world until the day you die. But for you, your life is to be repeated over and over. Ever sigh and emotion and event shall repeat again, the sands of time will forever flow through you endlessly as the desert. Therefore, you will forever be alone as time constantly repeats itself from the past, present and future. It will be like your childhood. Something you hope comes, but then the person shall stab you in the back constantly until you die with the emotion of betrayal. Hate will go on and on and o –"_

"_SHUT UP!" screamed the red-head boy. _

"_Your past and future will repeat itself to you in the present and that will be your curse…," _

"_SHUT UP!" _

"_Gaara…" _

_The boy looked up, tears running down his cheek, cheeks flushed and heated with emotions. He grinded his teeth and felt the pain of invisible agony pierce him. "Mother…?" But he knew it couldn't be. _

_The person that whispered his name was not, mostly likely, human at all. In front of the young child, was a young girl, with hair the color of sandy yellow, but smeared with blood. She had eyes the color of black crystals that gleamed in the light of the full moon that rose over head of them. Her skin was the color of snow, pale white and almost transparent. She wore a white cloak, at the end of the cloak, it was ripped and the fabric was twisted, soaked and dripping with blood of the dead and the living. Nothing met the ground, no showing of legs or acknowledgement of feet. __She looked young, but from her hands, which she had in front of her, she seemed older. They were old, twisted out of shape and the fingers looked cracked and smashed with an effect of a hammer slamming down on them. _

"_Gaara…," the lady said as she looked down, reaching down towards the child. Her hand went where his heart lay beneath pale flesh. Her fingers dug into the flesh and passed the organs and bones easily. _

"_Ack!" The boy fell to his knees and hands, coughing blood to the sand below him. _

_The woman's hands withdrew and in her hand, she held his heart, beating slowly and bleeding, pieces of it missing as if it had been glass, shattered in the boy's rib cage. Her hand withdrew into her cloak and she walked off, only turning her head to look at her child to mutter, "You won't be needing this, my child." _

_The child coughed again, blood splattering on the yellow sand below him. _

"_Gaara…the demon that loves only himself. And that shall be true as time repeats itself over and over. You are to suffer endlessly without a heart and move through life without love, emotions besides the ones you know. Hate, loneliness, carelessness and the feeling of betrayal, over and over again. That is why your mother picked that name for you. Gaara…the demon of the sand, never to be loved by anyone but itself. Your mother was always the smart one in my family," the man said as he closed his eyes and seemed to stay there motionless. _

"_Y-Yashamaru? YASHAMARU!" shouted the boy in panic._

"_Good-by, DEMON!" shouted the man with sandy yellow hair. He opened the vest he wore, revealing numerous of explosive tags. _

'_No,' thought the red-headed boy as he reached to touch the man, but the sand coiled around him, forcing his arm to retreat his side. "Yashamaru!" whispered the boy in horror. _

'_Gaara…the demon, who loves only himself…,' echoed the man's voice echoed in the redhead's mind._

Gaara jerked forward. He found himself panting helplessly, his chest rising rapidly as air filled his lungs and slipped out with exhales. _Just another dream_, he thought, _but the same one_.

He couldn't get it. He couldn't understand the dream at all. Why did it come back now? He wondered why this point of time. He only had those nightmares when he was a child, after the death of Yashamaru. He could never forget that day, and to keep him remembering that day, his mind had made that dream. It played over and over again, flickering through his mind's eye when he was awake.

"G-Gaara…?" asked a small, soft voice. The sound of his name seemed to vanish as it entered his ear and bounced off his eardrum.

He turned his head to the source of the voice, frowning at its bearer. "What, Hyuga?" he demanded coldly. She's staring at me, he thought.

"Oh…I-I…er…you w-were jerking i-in your s-sleeping and t-tossing…so I-I thought…," she trailed off, as if thinking that the rest was just unnecessary.

She was worried…about me? Gaara thought as he looked at the girl. "But…why worry about me?" he asked, only realizing his question when the words came back and hit him. He grinded his teeth, muttering silently under his breath.

"I-I'm your c-caretaker, s-so I should w-worry about my p-patient, s-shouldn't I?" Hinata asked.

His response was a mere grunt. He flopped back down on the mattress below, turned his head to look out the window, and stared blankly out at the hills of sands, longing to be in the world that he knew, run his finger through sand he hadn't felt in such a long time. He also had to rule a whole nation, so he wanted this quickly to be over with.

But he knew injuries took time to heal, now that he didn't have Shukaku anymore, they wouldn't heal faster than usual.

"A-are you alright?" Hinata asked, titling her head slightly, strands of her hair falling off her shoulder.

Gaara looked at her, aware of his staring. He grimaced slightly and said with little patients in his voice, "Hn…now stop talking to me…I'm tired." As he said this, he leaned back down and pulled the covers over him.

Before he closed his eyes, he could see the faint red of her swollen eyes and the little smile that danced on her lips as she stared at him as he began to fall into sleep.

Hinata sat there silent for a moment, clutching the bed sheet from her shoulders closer to her, to keep in the little warmth she had. She shivered once and laid her head down back onto the mattress. She watched as he breathed in and out, his chest rising. She gently smiled at nothing and closed her eyes, caught in the drift of sleep.

"Good night…," she whispered out of nowhere. "And sweet dreams."

* * *

A/N: Chapter Six…FINISHED! You know, if you read my author's notes for the first chapter, than I said this was going to be at least 6 chapters. We'll, there's a lot more things to add, so it's really not going to be six chapters./Groan/ XP. Well, I hoped you like it and drop a review if you want! 

---GlazingSilverWing /././.


	7. Chapter 7: Traitor

A/N: _**(Message to **__**Animefreak)**_, _**Animefreak,**_ I'm not so good at giving advise like that, but, I'll give you my opinion of what to do. I think you should show your liking of anime. I mean, watching anime is something you do, right? Well, if it's something you do, then isn't it a part of you. Of what you are? My question to you is why are you hiding that part of you. I mean, I have my secrets, but not one in which I hide one of my personalities. Stand up for what you believe in and don't be so scared of what your friends would say. They might or might not mind. Probably they weren't mind so much. I mean, what makes a friend is that you have similarities, but there's always something that makes them different. My friends LOVE shopping, but I HATE it. It's just so boring! But, they don't really mind. And, what kind of friends criticize their other friends liking? Don't hide yourself in a corner, like I did. Shine and stand for what you believe in and ask them what's so wrong about anime. Have they seen it? You should talk to them about this problem. If you don't, then when you're older, it'd come back to haunt you and you would wish you had done what you should have done. _**This is only my opinion of what to do. In the end, you have to make a choice. I hope I helped you a little bit. **_

_**--GlazingSilverWing **_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter Seven: Traitor 

Gaara sat up, pushing the sheets harshly away. The beams of the sun spilled from the window into the room. Its warmth wrapped around the young Kazekage, but he felt so cold inside.

He pressed his legs against his chest, hugging them and seeking comfort from the only person he knew and trusted: himself. _That damn dream, again, _he thought. _I hate it. _He shifted again and sat at the edge of the bed, staring blankly out the window.

His bangs moved over his eyes, blocking the orbs of aqua-green. He pulled one lock of his hair away from his eyes and slipped it behind his ear. He suddenly noticed the quietness of the room and looked around, finding it empty and…without a usual happy feeling. _That Hyuga's gone, _he thought, slightly surprised that that was the first thing he knew was missing.

_Like I really care where she is, _he told himself. Why would he be worried of a shy Hyuga anyway? The door slid open. He didn't even turn around. The aura around it was already known to him. "What do you want,Keikan**?"** he asked, not turning towards the person.

"Sheesh, can't you say hello to your girlfriend?" a feminine voice said, walking towards the redhead.

"For he last time, we don't have a relationship. Get out, I have no patience for you today," Gaara said, watching the female move towards the window.

The female had hair the color of wheat, steaming down her back, her eyes the color of misty blue. Dangling from her ears were twisting gems and around her neck was a chain of gold and a pendent of a simple flower. She wore a white shirt without sleeves, a design of twisting water at the corner of its hem.

Her forearm up to her elbow was covered with fishnets and over her hand was a black glove, her fingers bare. Her other arm was left naked. The shirt ended above her bellybutton, exposing a slit of tan skin. Wrapped around her waist was her Suna headband. She wore black shorts that ended above the knees, her shuriken/kunai holster on her left thigh.

"Just wanted to say hi," she said, looking at Gaara and walking towards him, always keeping her eyes on his. She put one finger under his chin, her thumb skimming the skin of his chin. The moment she did that, he tore away from the contact, glaring at the girl as if she was a sadistic person.

"Can't I get a kiss," she asked in a child like tone. He hated that about her. Her voice and how she carelessly threw her words around.

"Get. The. HELL. Out," he said roughly, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at the girl from the corner of his eye.

The girl opened her mouth to say something, but found sand pushing her towards the door.

Hinata was in the doorway, holding a small case of ointment in her hands. She watched, confused, as a girl was pushed by sand towards the door. Hinata moved out of the way wryly and unsure with the certain movement. She watched as the girl was pushed out of the room. She was slightly startled when the door slammed shut and the lock flipped close. Sand retreated from the lock and went around Hinata.

She could feel the small breeze created by the rushing sand brush over her cheek and small strands of her hair lifted. The sand retreated out to the open window and Gaara withdrew his charka, the sand dropping instantly to the ground.

Gaara panted silently, sweat dripping down his forehead. That was little too much. "You s-shouldn't use s-so much chakra. Y-You'll pass o-out," Hinata's voice echoed inside the room. "W-who was she?"

"An annoying girl that won't leave me alone and doesn't now when to shut up," was his only reply. He turned his head and stared at the girl for awhile, frowning slightly. "I never got your name." he asked steadily, never raising a note in his voice.

"Um…er…i-it's Hinata. Hyuga Hinata," she replied. She stared down, fiddling with the small case in her hands, her thumbs circling the cap. She, then, realized that all this time he had referred to her as only "Hyuga," as if she had no name to go with it.

Gaara sat there, not giving any acknowledgement that he had heard her. Hinata looked down, slightly frustrated from the silence that flowed into the room. She saw him nodded, his dark-rimmed eyes closing slightly.

Silence tainted the room; the only noise was the silent howl of the wind. "T-Temari-chan told me s-she'll be coming to c-check on you. S-she wanted me to g-give you this," Hinata said, shattering the silence. She held out a scroll with the sign of the Wind and at the bottom was written, "To the Kazekage."

Gaara took it and opened it, shutting it after a few minutes. He grunted and put the scroll a side. "What's the case for?"

"Oh…er…w-well…it's nothing b-but ointment for your w-wounds," Hinata said, slightly titling her head to one side.

He frowned, turned his head, and looked blankly out of the window.

"Who was that?" Hinata asked. Gaara realized that she didn't stutter at the moment. He ignored the question, figuring he had answered already for that and said instead:

"You didn't stutter…Why is that, Hyuga?" he asked, looking at her, his eyes still with shards of ice.

Hinata slightly cocked her head and slightly blushed. "I…er…I-I only stutter if I-I concentrate on m-my words," she said, stuttering the whole sentence.

Silence endlessly flowed between them.

Hinata shifted towards Gaara, walking up to him and, with red tainted cheeks and much embarrassment, asked him to remove his shirt so she could untie the wrapped bandages under the fabric. He looked at her for a moment, almost arching a brow in question, but he did what he was asked. He took of his shirt, seeing Hinata turn her gaze away and blush pink before he had lifted the fabric up and over his head.

She unsurely moved towards the mattress and sat next to him, slipping pale, slender finger into an inner binding, searching for the had-been-tucked end. She found the end quickly and tugged at it, bringing it from the binding. She unwrapped the bandage, the material falling into her hand. She moved it to her side and removed the cap, dipping her finger into the substance. She skimmed her fingers over the slashes and wounds, tracing them with her finger as the ointment followed.

"S-sorry," Hinata said when her forearm had bumped into his elbow roughly. He grunted and put his hands on his knees, releasing exhales of breaths calmly.

The door slide open.

"Hinata-chan! Gaara! Everything going all right?" asked a feminine voice from the door. Hinata turned and smiled.

"H-hello Temari-chan," the shy girl replied. Gaara muttered a hello, and turned his head to look out the window, frowning slightly.

"Yo," said a male voice from behind Temari.

They all turned, except Gaara, seeing Kankuro in the doorway, holding up a hand as a gesture of a wave and was somewhat had a smile on his lips.

"Temari…please don't tell me you let Kankuro be Kazekage while I'm out," Gaara muttered, looking at his brother from the corner of his eye.

"What does that suppose to mean?" Kankuro said angrily, glaring at his younger brother. "You know, I had to give up my free time –"

"WE KNOW KANKURO!" Temari raised her voice, a pulse popping on the corner of her forehead as she crossed her arms over her chest. Kankuro grumbled under his breath.

Hinata stood there in front of Temari for a moment, slightly tilting her head to one side. Then, after a silence that flowed endlessly, Hinata smiled and began to giggle silently, holding her hand up to her mouth to muffle the noise.

Temari smiled, giggling with Hinata happily. Kankuro frowned, shrugging his shoulder and mumbling endlessly that girls were the craziest life form in the ninja world. Kankuro walked over to his younger brother.

Gaara was still staring out the window, frowning and holding a glass of water (don't know where that came from, but, you'll see its purpose soon enough). He lifted the cup that contained the liquid up to his lips and drank silently, dropping the flow of the water going into his mouth by withdrawing it, letting it rest in his hand. He muttered something to himself and focused his eyes on a tree, narrowing them slightly.

Gaara lifted the cup up to his lips again, feeling the presence of his older brother behind him, but he didn't bother turning around or giving any acknowledgement that he knew Kankuro was behind him. He began drinking, but quickly spat the water back into the cup as he felt a palm slap roughly against his back. "Son of –"

"How's it been lately anyways?" Kankuro's voice cut in before his little brother could finish his statement.

"Kankuro-san, d-don't do t-that. Gaara's w-wounds still need to heal…," Hinata said, looking over Temari's shoulder.

"Sorry," he muttered.

"Why the hell did you do that for…," Gaara said flatly, turning around to glare at his brother, sending green shards at him like thrown daggers of ice.

"…." Kankuro didn't reply.

Silent stretched between the two siblings. Gaara moved his gaze back to the window, getting off the bed, wobbly moving towards the window. "What are you doing?" Kankuro's voice asked.

Gaara didn't reply as he untied the strings of the drapes, falling on its own free will as nothing held it back. The white fabric drooped, lifting slightly as the wind blew. It let the beams of the sun in, but it dulled slightly as it passed the fabric. "Someone's watching us…," he mumbled, to low for any to hear.

---------

"Damn," whispered a voice. The person withdrew an object away from their eyes and tucked it back into their back poach. The person stood up.

The person had hair the color of black, shoulders length and had a bang over one eye. Weirdly, the bang was dyed blue, slashing, slashing over their eye. The person's eye was the color blazing purple. They were wearing a black shirt that's collar around their neck, the sleeves loss, one long, down to the writs, and one cut, up to the shoulder. Around the neck was a headband, the fabric black, the sign carved on the metal was a cloud shape figure.

The shirt ended shortly, showing the mid-section of their body, which was covered in fishnets. They wore short dark blue pants that ended above the knees; the knee down to the ankle was covered in fishnets. The other leg was left naked. On their right thigh was their shuriken/kunai holster.

From behind them, a poof of smoke appeared, disappearing as the wind picked up, rustling the leaves in which the two unknown hid. "Learn anything, Akisame?" asked the person.

"Little," Akisame said, not brothering to turn over to the new comer.

"Sad."

"Shut up," Akisame moaned out, hearing the person chuckle.

**---------**

"See you all later," Kankuro and Temari said in unison as they slide the door shut. Hinata's eyes seemed to follow the sound of their steps until they vanished. She sighed deeply, closing her eyes and slightly rubbing her shoulders.

"I-It was nice that t-they visited," Hinata said, yawning. It was funny. It was only noon and she was tired. She was surprise that there was no grunt in reply. She turned to look at Gaara, smiling inwardly.

He was asleep, his eyes closed and relaxed, not shut tightly. He was okay, no sweating and no clutching the sheets or clamping his chaws together. His face was clam and his hair swayed as the wind whispered into the room.

_He looks at peace, _Hinata thought.

---------

Late that night, a young girl with wheat hair and the eyes of misty blue, and who was grumbling curses under her breath was walking in the empty streets of Suna, Village-Hidden-in-the-Sand. "Who's the girl…I bet she's Gaara-kun's new girlfriend. But wait, _**I'm **_his girlfriend! She can't be it! No. She's stealing my Gaara-kun from me! Arg! I'll get her! I just need to get her out of the picture so Gaara would fall for me and we'd be so happy together!" Keikan declared. She scratched her chin with her finger, thinking of the plan.

"So, what have you learned, Akisame?" asked a whispering voice from an alley.

Keikan whipped her head towards the sound, coming from a long alley. Making a quick gesture with her hands, increase her hearing. "Little. Only that Hyuga Hinata is taking care of the Kazekage of Suna, Sabaku no Gaara until h –"

The sound of bone coming in contact with metal was heard. "You idiot, we already know that. We _are _in Suna, aren't we, you Baka!" shouted a whispering voice.

_So that's who she is, _Keikan thought. She pulled out a kunai knife and jumped onto a porch of an apartment, leaping from one to another until she reached where the two unknown where whispering.

She made a gesture with her hands, disappearing as the wind blew. "What do you think you Cloud Nin are doing here? Suna and Cloud aren't allies," she said as she appeared behind Akisame, holding the kunai knife at her neck, grabbing her arm and shoving it behind her back.

The second person stood up quickly, moving to make a hand gesture, but immediately stopped as they saw Keikan move the knife closer to Akisame's flesh on her neck. Akisame wiggled, trying to get her arm free, only to succeed in getting her neck slightly cut.

The blood slid from the polished black knife, slithering down and dripping as it rolled off the edge. "Tell me your reasons why you're here," Keikan said, pressing the blade slightly closer to the wound, more blood sliding off the blade.

The second person hesitated, but then, said in a wry voice, "We're here for the Hyuga. And only her."

"What Hyuga? What the heck is that?" Keikan asked.

"The girl that's taking care of the Kazekage. The girl white eyes, you blind idiot!" Akisame shouted, struggling to get free.

Keikan thought for a long moment. _I have feeling that that Hyuga is going to interfere with me plans, _she thought. _Or, rather, she already has._ "Hn…Now, what's the plan of getting rid of her, Cloud Nin," she asked, letting go of the girl's arm and slipping the kunai knife back into the holster.

"What!?" Akisame asked, muttering afterward a medic ninjustu and placing her palm on the sliced flesh.

Keikan turned around. "I have a feeling she's going to interfere with my plans to have Gaara-kun to myself. I want to get rid of her. What do you guys want me to do?" she asked.

The two Cloud Nins were lost, a question mark floating above their heads. "…Explain…?" the second person asked.

Keikan sighed. "I want to get rid of the Hyuga. I want her out of Suna. I'll help you get information on her so you can take her down easily and then I can get Gaara-kun for myself. Got it?" She asked impatiently.

The two Nins shook their heads wryly, still confused, but catching on.

"Good. Now, how shall we work this plan out," Keikan asked as she twirled a kunai.

* * *

A/N/Smirks evilly/ Are you wondering how Keikan changed so fast, I'll give you her profile. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. /Still smiling evilly/ What.../Glares/ 

Name: Keikan Kumori (Her name means Crown of Thorns in the Shadows)

Hair: Yellow Wheat, flowing down her back, waist length.

Eyes: Misty Blue

Height? (I don't know…but I know she's skinny)

Weight? (I don't know…)

Likings/Info: Chasing Gaara.

Personality: She's most of the time quite foolish and child-like, laid back and easy going, a normal kind of girl. Unless, something's interfering with her plans. She gets serious then, her dark side released slightly, entering her mind. She likes to be bossy most of the time when she gets this way.


	8. Chapter 8: Kokuzoku Meian

A/N/Sigh/ Dear Animefreak, I'd like to say something to you. I'm so sorry if my suggestion did not work. If your friends made fun of you or anything bad, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to. I was just suggesting on what you should do. If it did work and your friends understand, congratulation, but if not, I'm sorry.

OMG. While I was writing this, a swear, I almost had the urge to pound my head into the keyboard. Long title, I know. Why…why do I feel like someone's breathing down my neck?

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter Eight: Kokuzoku Meian

"So…how are we to put this?" Keikan asked, crossing her arms over her chest, her voice impatient.

The two Cloud Nins sent uneasy glances towards each other. If their leader were to know they needed help from a Sand Nin, he would have surely laugh pitifully at them. Akisame glared at Keikan before mumbling under her breath.

Keikan heard little pieces and shot Akisame a glare. The girl jumped slightly back, shooting a glare back. Akisame's companion could only sigh and shrug her shoulders.

"Look…here's the plan…," she paused for a moment. "Um…before I explain, I'd like to….," she paused, raising her hand just above her shoulders and made a small gesture.

---------

Gaara looked down at his hands, his expression blank and his eyes half-lidded in constant thought. _Funny…_, he commented when he had looked down the hands in his lap. Funny that's been nearly two years since he's changed…funny that, although he hadn't killed anyone for his own amusement for the last year and a half, his hands was still coated with blood.

Nothing stained his pale hands, no reminder lay inside him of what he's done to the innocent, but the memories of all the screams and shouts sipped and spilled over the sand he used. The sand in the gourd in the corner of his room in the Kazekage Mansion, the room in which is always seemed to be left empty.

Why he doesn't use it…there had been no reason to. A room is where you sleep, but he, the Kazekage of Suna, could not sleep even with half his spirit gone.

Gaara grimaced, his face scrunching as he had just called Shukuku a part of his spirit, a part of him. But he could not deny any of the thoughts that ran through his head.

Shukuku had been apart of him. Apart of his soul, half and half. He has his own mind, but two doors lay in the hall, one to his and the other to Shukuku. The doors were only to be open with one key.

Gaara cursed in his mind, at Shukuku's door, now just an empty room, only filled with shadows. Shukuku was his burden in life. Shukuku was surely an edge of a sword, slicing through the life of its vessel, devouring the parts little by little.

But…although Gaara felt some happiness in the take-away, he couldn't help but feel empty, missing a half. The half that gave him a burden in life, torn away, like two torn piece of paper, one thrown onto the floor, the other used as written paper.

He could not sleep even without his half because of to many years in the wake. When he had first tried, his had dozed slowly, but he was awake, never going into complete sleep. And for the last few days, he would always drift, never swept in the current of sleep. Those dreams he had had been simply memories of his childhood not to be spoken.

Gaara's features smoothed out, but his brow was still painted with a frown. He could feel her palm touch his shoulder, the grip warm and soft.

"A-are you all right? Y-You've been like t-this since morning," her soft voice breezed into his ear.

He remained silent, turning his head towards her and giving her a glare to back off. She didn't seem to catch it. Gaara really hated Shukuku more than he ever had in his life right about there. Shukuku was the reason his life was twisted, the reason why he was feared, feared because he was a vessel, a weapon.

And now, even after Shukuku was taken, the demon still tormented him. First, being dead and then almost painfully being brought back to life. And now, he had to deal with her, for now, his problem.

He glared at her again, and she seemed to see it, her lids dropping. She slipped away, walking towards the open window, sighing as the breeze whistled past her. _He is barely willing to tell me anything. It seems his only communication is with his glares…, _she thought, running her hand through her hair, playing with the ends.

Hinata felt as if the days in Suna seemed to get longer with each day. But she knew the hours the moon and the sun rose were still concluded to being twelve hours, the day a long twenty-four.

She sighed again as she shifted back towards her seat, stopping and bending over to grab her sewing equipment. Hinata seated in the chair next to the Kazekage and carefully slipped a thread in the eye of the needle. She picked a piece of clothe, the color a light blue, the texture looking as if it had been made from silk. The edges were carefully sewn with lace, the lace white as new fallen snow.

She poked the needle into the clothe, grimacing and softly saying "ow" when the needle pricked her on the other side. She continued with the sewing, poking the needle in places and pulling the thread, repeating each step until the thread formed an image.

Gaara stared at her from the corner of his eye, glancing at her work and then going back to his thinking and running the past few days in his head. It's only been a week and a half…and yet, his wounds were not yet healed. He was thinking that his wounds were as stubborn as he.

After some moments of silence, Hinata poked the needle into the fabric, the middle of the small piece of metal behind blue. She set it down and asked Gaara if he would like anything.

He roughly grunted a "no" and the room fell silent once more. Hinata looked down, finding the floor interesting for a moment.

A sound of the door screeching open echoed into the room. A piece of long wood, painted a dark blue, with its tip sharp and made of metal, shot through the air, connected by a light brown string, its holder unseen.

Hinata turned around, the blade slicing her cheek, the blood rippling on the smooth silver surface. It zipped past her, heading for the redhead.

Gaara grabbed the wood, the blade slightly cutting at his palm. He jerked it forward, moving his hand in a circler motion, gathering the strong string. He grabbed part of the string a few inches from his other and jerked. One arm near his chest as the other came out to grab the string and pulled firmly forward.

"Hey!" squeaked a feminine voice. "Wait, don –," the voice began but was soon cut off as the person was dragged into the room, partly by sand, and tripped over their own feet. _SPLAT. _The person fell face-first to the ground, jerking upright quickly. They covered their face with their hand, rubbing gently the place where they had fallen.

"Matsuri….aren't you suppose to be training with Temari?" Gaara's said in monotone, eyeing the girl with a glare.

The girl stood up quickly, sweat dropping and hesitantly saying: "Well…about that…Temari-neechan had to go on a mission today...," the girl mumbled.

Hinata watched from the side, a question mark floating over her head, as the two talked. She worried when Gaara crossed his arms over his chest; eyes narrowed, shards digging in the young woman's forehead. His voice turned from monotone to seriousness and annoyance.

"Matsuri…the last time I checked, Temari didn't have another mission until next Sunday. If you aren't there with her training, she either ran to Kohona to meet up with that lazy one or was it that you came here with Temari not noticing?" Gaara asked in complete annoyance, anticipating an answer from the young woman.

The young woman ceased her eyes and shook her hands in front of her, keeping her hands near her waist. She sweated as she said, "Um…Temari-neechan told me to keep quiet either way, and so, I can't exactly tell you…heh…"

Hinata watched with a questionable expression as Gaara narrowed his eyes. With one swift movement, the wrapped strings around his hands were off and, without a second consideration, quickly tossed the wooden weapon at the young woman.

Matsuri ducked, raising her hands to her head as a shield. She turned towards the thrown weapon, sweating as she saw the sharp tip had pierced and chipped the wood of the door. She turned her back towards the two and pulled out the weapon, falling on her bottom

Hinata walked to her side and offered her a hand. The young girl kindly refused it, getting up herself and brushing unseen dusk off her skirt.

Hinata gave the girl an once-over scan.

The girl looked around the age of 14 or 15. She had bark brown hair, messy at the bangs and cut short, brushing against the shoulders. Her eyes where of ice-black, but had a warming feeling to it. She wore a vest, not exactly a chuunin or jonin vest, just a vest. The shirt underneath it was purple, the sleeves ending at the elbow. She wore a skirt, purple, and an inch or so above the knees. The skirt was pleaded, leaving room to move around more. There were slits on each side, not big, but enough to let air pass.

The girl walked over to Hinata and examined her with curiosity, then, grinned. She turned towards the red-head and asked in a teasing voice, "Gaara-sensei….is this your girlfriend or the girl Temari has been talking about?"

Hinata blinked, her cheeks turning pink. The redhead glared at his student and said with little patients: "No…Now get out of my face about this whole girlfriend thing. I don't need and I don't want one. Got it?" he snapped the last part.

"Got it," Matsuri said, her voice a little shaky.

"Um…I-If I may ask…who are you a-and what's y-your name?" Hinata asked, her voice a little uncertain to ask.

"Me?" Matsuri asked. "I'm Matsuri, the student of the Kazekage of Suna, Gaara-sensei..."

"S-Student?" Hinata stuttered and glanced towards the redhead. He doesn't seem the type to teach anyone, Hinata thought, biting her lower lip.

"Hn…He doesn't seem like the type of guy, but, he's still a good teacher!" Matsuri said, grinning towards the white-eyed Hyuga. "May I ask who you are?"

"Hinata…H-Hyuga Hinata," she replied.

The girl rubbed a finger on her chin, thinking. "Oh…you must be one of Naruto's friends. He sure has a lot of them," Matsuri said, glancing out the window. "Hyuga Hinata…oh! You're the girl that likes Naruto!" she said, snapping her fingers.

"Um…I…um…D-Does everyone k-know?" Hinata asked, her face turning a deep red, her hands hovering over her cheeks. She felt like fainting.

"Hm…Mostly everyone who knows you…except Naruto of course," Matsuri said almost cheerfully.

"W-w-who told you?"

"Temari-neechan."

Hinata looked towards the red-head. "D-did your s-sister tell everyone in S-Suna!?" she asked, biting her lower lip until the skin cracked under the pressure.

Gaara shrugged his shoulders. "Don't know…and don't care either…but most likely she told her friends…"

Hinata almost fainted, but kept her stand. "P-please don't tell Naruto-kun…I-I want to tell him m-myself…"

"Really? Hopefully, he won't reject like Gaara-sensei did to all those girls…," Matsuri said in a matter-of-fact voice. "But I don't blame him, though…They were annoying!"

Hinata blinked and then gave a little hesitant giggle.

Matsuri smiled back. This Hyuga is sure likeable, she concluded. Maybe even likeable to her sensei.

--------

The sky turned a gloomy gray just before Matsuri had to leave. When she went out of the hospital, rain was pounding against her.

The clouds shed there unforgettable tears down to the earth, turning the once hot sand into cold mud. The almost dry oasis next to Suna was nearly over flooded with rain water. Thunder cried out in painful agony, lightening striking to grieve with its partner.

Hinata closed the window, flipping the lock to keep the window closed. She let the curtains drape down, placing the string that had held them onto the desk next to Gaara's bed.

The bed was empty…

Hinata sighed. He sure is taking his time in the bathroom, and the lights off in the room. Maybe he just wanted to be alone and in the familiar darkness.

She moved towards the window, raising the curtains and letting them drape over her. She put her elbows on the sill of the window and stared up at the gloomy gray clouds, shedding their tears. She looked farther beyond the walls of Suna, seeing that the storm ended a quarter of a mile away. Funny that it rained so much in the desert now.

Hinata had heard that Suna was experiencing a drought…well, not anymore.

The lock of the bathroom door clicked and the door creaked silently open. Hinata didn't notice until she heard his footsteps coming near her.

She turned around the lifted the curtains, slipping away from its gentle grasp. She watched as Gaara moved beside her and looked out the window, just staring out as the water poured.

Hinata watched him for a moment. He looked worse when he came out of the bathroom than when he had first entered! The rings around his eyes were a darker than ever and his eyes looked red swollen and tired. His aqua-green orbs seemed to vibrate, his pupil, a shade darker than his aqua-green eyes, where dilated.

He seemed off into the distance, as if captured in the storm itself. "Funny…the raining season isn't suppose to start until three months from now…wonder what caused it to rain," he mumbled to no one, placing his elbows on the sill.

His breath turned white and stained the glass. "Hopefully, Kankuro knows how to act with this…," he mumbled, erasing the white stain with a movement across with his hand. He slipped away, letting the curtains to fall in their original place.

He mumbled, Hinata found that he seemed to mumble a lot about nothing, "You have been here a week and a half, if I'm correct…hopefully you can go back to Kohona soon." His voice held nothing.

Hinata looked down. Does he really want her to leave so much? His wounds were almost healed, only his wound that had been stitched was not healing properly.

Gaara sat at the foot of the hospital bed, exhaling in the resemblance of sighs.

There was a silent knock on the door. Hinata moved and unlocked the latch she had sworn had flipped. "Oh…hello," she said, stepping away and letting the visitors in.

Gaara stared at the people as they entered. Keikan and a young man who looked a year older than him.

He examined the stranger with a silent glare.

He was tall, and pale, a healthy pale. His hair was a light blue, bangs hovering over the shoulders, leaning one side to being white. Earrings attached to his earlobes, a narrowed kite figure dangling. They were black, and looked as if something was in it, a liquid, but something almost solid.

His eyes were big and the blue in them was spun with gray. He wore a shirt with its collar wrapped around his neck, the color a light blue, threaded with indigo. His sleeves were long, ending near the finger tips.

His shirt was long, too, ending above the knees. Slits were on either side, to make the wearer be more mobile. A deep blue string wrapped loosely around his waist, one end up to the hip and the other end slightly below the hip. His pants were white and ended above the ankle, the kunai/shruiken hostler on his right thigh.. His sandals were a deep blue, titling to the color of black.

"Kokuzuko Meian," he introduced, placing an arm over his chest and giving a slight bow.

"H-Hyuga Hinata," she said. Then turning towards the girl, she asked, "A-are you the girl G-Gaara-sama didn't want to talk a-about?"

"Me? Really? Ahem. I'm KeikanKumor…Nice to meet you," she said, giving Hinata a soft smile. Hinata smiled politely back at both of them and mumbled a hello again.

"Sabaku no Gaara…Kokuzuko….I haven't seen you in the village. You aren't from here, are you?"

"No…I'm just visiting Keikan. I'm from Sakyuu," Kokuzuko said.

"Yep. Its first time here and I was showing him around. He said he'd like to meet the Kazekage so…I brought him here," Keikan said.

"You're a weapon user," Gaara said, seemly changing the subject.

"How did you know?" Kokuzuko asked, shifting slightly.

Gaara fell silent for a moment. "For one, your earrings…they seem to be able to contain certain chemicals, such as poison. Two, the insides of your sleeves are made of light leather; slits are there for you to place weapons and then easily taking them out and using them. Three, you have two swords at the ends of your belt. Your holster is slightly bigger than most, for storing more shruiken. You have a dagger in a case attached to your sandal. Your sandals are specially made to have a blade tucked at the heels. A small push down and the blade comes out. Anything I miss?" his said, his voice monotone, but the slight boredom and annoyance was evident.

The blue-eyed youth gave a small chuckle. "The rumors are true. You are good, Kazekage-sama…but you do need to be good to be given the title of the strongest shinobi in this village."

Gaara didn't comment, didn't move. He glared suspiciously at the person.

**---------**

Gaara didn't like the youth one bit. Something about him just pissed him off. Hinata seemed to like him. A lot. Keikan kept staring at the red-head, barely into the conversation with the shy Hyuga and her cousin.

By the time they left, the clouds had drifted away, the grey clouds gone, the sun setting at the horizon, painting the sand red and orange.

Gaara didn't like this day.

He fell partly asleep, half awake and half asleep.

'_I wonder if I can get some herbs to make some special ointment. Sakura-chan said they had a greenhouse,' _Hinata thought. She looked over at the Kazekage. He seemed asleep…but she knew in the middle he'd wake up in cold sweat and something would be wrong. _'I'll go another day,' _she thought as she slipped into the chair and rested her head down on the mattress.

She drifted with the current of sleep and dreamt bitter-sweet dreams.

* * *

A/N: ARG! This just pissing me off! The next chapter, I swear to god, something's going to happen!

I have every scene down in the hospital, so we can move on in the next chapter.

Except that I almost banged my head into the wooden wall to my right when I was writing the introduction over Kokuzuko…here's his profile, and the two cloud nins. I'm missing one, but I did that one purpose. //Smirks// Can you guess what I missed? And Akisame's partner's name is revealed. I haven't done a description on her, have I?

Name: Kokuzuko Meian

Hair: Light blue

Eyes: Blue spun gray

Birthday: December 8th

Age: 16 or 17. (He's the same age as Team Gai, but I don't know their age in the time-jump)

Blood: AB

Info:

He has different personalities. To humorous to emotionless. He's developed these different personalities over the experience of being a spy of Suna. (Other information has been deleted)

Name: Akisame Kakou ("meaning autumn rain fall")

Hair: Black, one bang blue

Eye: Blazing Purple

Birthday: July 5th

Age: 15 or 16

Blood: A

Land: Cloud

Info:

She an enthusiastic girl and has a short temper. Although educated with well-manner she would rather not act that way. (other information has been deleted.)

Name: KumoruSora (her name means: "To become a cloudy sky")

Hair: Bark Brown

Eye: Orange/Red

Birthday: December 5th

Age: 15 or 16

Blood: O

Land: Cloud

Info:

Partner of Akisame. She's the leader of the small group. She's a jonin form the village Hidden-in-Cloud. Her mission is to capture Hyuga Hinata in order to obtain the secret of the Byakugan. She's curious but serious as well. She can be humorous and sometimes clueless, but she gets the job done. (Other information has been deleted)


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